ONE MOMENT CAN CHANGE A LIFE FOREVER. 'An exceptional read' The Sunday Times 'Vital glimmers of hope enlighten this profoundly poignant book' Guardian A powerful and heart-breaking novel about three childhood friends living during the Second World War whose fates are closely intertwined, even when their lives take very different courses. Inspired by a true story, this is the perfect read for fans of The Book Thief and Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl. Vienna, 1936. Elsa, Leo and Max have always been best friends, a special team of three. Then the Nazis come. As a growing darkness descends around them, Leo and Elsa run for their lives, taking two very different paths across Europe. And Max, once their closest friend, now becomes the enemy as he is drawn into the Hitler Youth. Will the friends ever find their way back to each other? Will they want to? Inspired by a true story, WHEN THE WORLD WAS OURS is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking, and shows how the bonds of love, family and friendship allow glimmers of hope to flourish, even in the most hopeless of times. Three friends. Two sides. One memory.

A young girl learns she's half mermaid and plunges into a scheme to reunite with her father in this entrancing, satisfying tale that beckons readers far below the waves.
For as long as she can remember, twelve-year-old Emily Windsnap has lived on a boat. And, oddly enough, for just as long, her mother has seemed anxious to keep Emily away from the water. But when Mom finally agrees to let her take swimming lessons, Emily makes a startling discovery -- about her own identity, the mysterious father she's never met, and the thrilling possibilities and perils shimmering deep below the water's surface. With a sure sense of suspense and richly imaginative details, first-time author Liz Kessler lures us into a glorious undersea world where mermaids study shipwrecks at school and Neptune rules with an iron trident -- an enchanting fantasy about family secrets, loyal friendship, and the convention-defying power of love.

From million-copy bestselling author Liz Kessler comes the powerful new landmark World War II novel for fans of Michael Morpurgo and Phil Earle.  When Liv finds a secret box from her grandmother’s childhood she uncovers an extraordinary war-time story of bravery, betrayal and daring defiance. A story that will change Liv and her family forever…   Holland, 1942. The world is at war and as the Nazis’ power grows, Jewish families are in terrible danger. Twelve-year-old Mila and her older sister Hannie are sent to live with a family in another city with new identities and the strict instruction not to tell anyone that they are Jewish.   Hannie, determined to fight back, is swept into the Dutch resistance as an undercover agent: Code Name Kingfisher.  And though Mila does her best to make friends and keep out of trouble, there is danger at every turn and the sisters are soon left questioning who they can trust…

A powerful and heart-breaking novel about three childhood friends living during the Second World War whose fates are closely intertwined, even when their lives take very different courses. For readers of Private Peaceful, The Book Thief and Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl.

Three friends. Two sides. One memory.

Vienna. 1936.

Three young friends – Leo, Elsa and Max – spend a perfect day together, unaware that around them Europe is descending into a growing darkness, and that events soon mean that they will be cruelly ripped apart from each other. With their lives taking them across Europe – to Germany, England, Prague and Poland – will they ever find their way back to each other? Will they want to?

Inspired by a true story, WHEN THE WORLD WAS OURS is an extraordinary novel that is as powerful as it is heartbreaking, and shows how the bonds of love, family and friendship allow glimmers of hope to flourish, even in the most hopeless of times.

Feisty girls take to the helm of a pirate ship in this new Emily Windsnap adventure! Ordinary girl on land, magical mermaid in water... Bubbling with magic, fun, friendship and oceans of adventure. A must-read for girls aged 8+.

When Emily Windsnap's boyfriend Aaron is captured by pirates there's only one option - join a rival pirate crew and persuade them to help rescue him. The Pirate Prince agrees, as long as Emily assists in finding the Trident's Treasure first.

But as if boarding a pirate ship weren't dangerous enough, Emily soon discovers that pirates hate mermaids. If her true identity is revealed, her life - and Aaron's - will be at risk.

How will Emily keep her secret when the only way to win the treasure is by turning into a mermaid?

The brand new ninth book in the five-million-copy-selling Emily Windsnap series by Liz Kessler. Bubbling with magic, fun, friendship and oceans of adventure. Emily Windsnap has returned home to Brightport, but she can't help but miss the fantastical adventures she's been having on pirates ships and tropical islands. And Brightport isn't exactly welcoming her home either - in fact, her best friend Mandy doesn't seem at all happy to see her. At least she has a new wishing stone, which will grant her three wishes, to help make things better. But whatever Emily wishes seems to end badly... When she wishes for things to improve in Brightport, it has terrible consequences for her mermaid friends in the ocean. And when when she wishes for the ocean to be kept safe, life on land becomes impossible. Can Emily work out how to use the final wish in a way that will save the future for land, sea, and all her friends?

Dive in The latest fin-tastic tale about a feisty half-mermaid introduces a mysterious boy who shares her fate.
When Emily Windsnap discovers an old diamond ring during a class hunt for trinkets, how is she supposed to know that the ring is half the key to unlocking an ancient curse by Neptune himself? Now, with the ring stuck firmly on her hand, Emily finds herself under a new curse: in just a few days, she'll cease to be half-human and half-mermaid and must say good-bye to one parent forever. Can she possibly find the other missing ring that will break all the curses? Is there anyone who can help her -- before it's too late?

The magic ring that Emily Windsnap - half mermaid, half ordinary girl - finds buried in the sand belongs to Neptune, and he wants it back. But the ring, once on, won't come off, and an angry Neptune sends Emily's boat spinning away across the sea. When it comes to rest, she and her best friend, Shona, can see a mysterious castle shimmering in the mist on the horizon...

Another magical adventure full of fun and friendship!

Emily Windsnap lives on a boat, but her mother has always been oddly anxious to keep her out of the water. It is only when Emily has her first school swimming lesson that she discovers why: as soon as she gets into the water, she grows a tail!

Soon Emily discovers a glorious underwater world of fishes, coral, shipwrecks and mermaids, and, best of all, she finds a best friend! With mermaid Shona Silkfin by her side, Emily uncovers a surprising family secret and embarks on a quest to reunite her mum and dad.

This enchanting fantasy deals with universal themes of family, friendship, love and justice - all handled with the lightness of touch for which Liz Kessler is so well known.

Meet Emily Windsnap! Ordinary girl on land, magical mermaid in water... Bubbling with magic, fun, friendship and new heights of adventure, a must-read for girls aged 8-12.

Emily Windsnap, an ordinary girl on land and a magical mermaid in water, is overdue a break from excitement - as her exhausted best friend Shona keeps reminding her! So, promising Shona she'll stay free of trouble and just 'swill out' ('chill out' for mermaids), Emily invites her best friend and her boyfriend Aaron along for a relaxing family holiday in the sun . . . But it seems adventure is hot on her heels - and her tail.

Soon, Emily discovers a hidden world beyond the falls of mysterious Forgotten Island - but it's not quite the paradise it seems. With a curse hanging over the island and a catastrophic disaster looming, Emily finds herself suddenly entangled in an ancient Prophecy. She must embark on a dangerous mission to seek the legendary giant the islanders believe will save them all, before it's too late.

But how can Emily save the day when rifts are forming between her and the very people she needs by her side? Must promises always be kept? And what happens when they are broken?

The brand new, eagerly awaited seventh book in the five-million-copy-selling Emily Windsnap series by Liz Kessler.

Emily Windsnap finds herself caught between worlds in a dramatic new episode of the New York Times best-selling series.

A field trip to a mysterious island quickly turns into an adventure when Emily Windsnap and Aaron discover a secret lookout point from which they spot a ghostly ship that no one else seems to be able to see. The ship appears and disappears only at certain times of day--growing fainter each time. Searching for answers only leads to more questions until Emily and her friends confront the island's keeper, uncovering the incredible story of a ship caught between land and sea, day and night . . . life and death. Only Emily, with her ability to transform from mermaid to human, can enter Atlantis to try to bring the ship's passengers back before the portal is closed forever. Emily knows that if she fails, not only will the passengers never see their loved ones again, but Emily won't be able to return either. Will she be able to resist the allure of Atlantis and return home before it's too late?

The New York Times best-selling series continues with the half-mermaid embarking on an icy and perilous journey to the Land of the Midnight Sun.
Strange storms are blowing up from the ocean, caused by the nightmares of Neptune, King of the Sea. Convinced that his dreams herald an approaching threat, Neptune enlists half-mermaids Emily Windsnap and Aaron for a top-secret mission to find and eliminate the source of the trouble. But Emily and Aaron quickly get in over their heads in the frigid waters of the frozen north. Deep within an alpine lake where magical reflections show what could be rather than what is, the two discover a trove of stolen memories and Neptune's darkest secret. Double-crosses and double-takes abound in Liz Kessler's fifth magical mermaid adventure.

Emily Windsnap is thrilled to arrive at her new home - a secret island near the Bermuda Triangle where humans and merfolk live together, and where being a girl who grows a tail as soon as she enters the water isn't a problem. But, being Emily, she can't resist exploring forbidden places, and, as a result, she inadvertently wakes the kraken - the legendary sea monster that has been asleep for two hundred years!

Emily tries to undo the damage as the kraken's terrifying tentacles rise from the deep!

Mermaid magic and a fabulous adventure focused on the power of friendship make this a real page-turner.

An enchanting tale with a fabulous monster, engaging characters, plenty of mermaid magic, and a page-turning story, Liz Kessler's new middle-grade fantasy has all the charm and warmth of its predecessor, THE TAIL OF EMILY WINDSNAP.
Picture an island set in a glittering blue sea, sparkling with white sand and palm trees, a secret place where humans and merfolk live together and where a girl who grows a mermaid's tail when she enters the water is not considered a problem. To Emily Windsnap - half mermaid, half human - her new home is perfect. That is, until Emily ruins everything by waking a legendary sea monster known as the Kraken from its hundred-year sleep. As the Kraken rises from the deep, putting the future of the islanders in jeopardy, Emily makes a desperate attempt to save them. But how could she have dreamed that her best friend, Shona, would stop talking to her, or that Mandy Rushton, her old enemy from junior high, would turn up when least expected?